"Stop Knife Crime Now" says Winnie Smith

9.00.00pm GMT Thu 24th Jan 2008

Tackling Crime - Winnie with local police in Leyton High Road

In the wake of last week's tragic stabbing on Leyton High Road, Winnie Smith has called for urgent action to tackle London's knife culture.

"Over the last eight years under Labour's Ken Livingstone, crimes involving knives have risen to epidemic levels. On average, a teenager is stabbed in London once a fortnight. We can't let this continue."

"From my work as a housing officer, I know what it's like to live with crime. I want to push for more action on a local level to combat this sort of behaviour.""

Already, here in Leyton, the Lib Dems have brought in Street Wardens, who have helped to reduce crime by at least 20%. This was thanks to the work of my Lib Dem colleague Barry Smith.

"Barry also set up Defendin' Da Hood, which brought together around 400 young people to talk about crime and other issues affecting our borough. These are exactly the sort of people we need to reach out to to help stem the rise in crime. But when Barry was forced out, Labour shut it down."

"I want to engage the whole community in the fight against crime. That's why I'm working to set up more Neighbourhood Watches, to let local people help make our area a safer place."

"Please contact your local Lib Dem Focus Team if you would like to know more details about Neighbourhood Watch."